AQA A-LEVEL HISTORY (7042)

HIS1D   Stuart Britain and the Crisis of Monarchy, 1603-1702

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SECTION ONE   Monarchs and Parliaments, 1603-1629

Topic 1   The Political Nation and the social basis of power

The Political Nation – the Monarch

The ‘Political Nation’ refers to those people in 17^th century England who wielded economic, political and social influence. At the top of the Political Nation was the monarch. Metaphors that were widely used at the time likened the monarch to the father of a family, or the head of a body. Theoretically, the monarch was seen as the source of all power and authority. This was because of Divine Right – the belief that all monarchs were appointed and approved by God (they were commonly described as ‘God’s lieutenants on earth’). In practice, however, the monarch needed to maintain the support of a majority of the nobility (aristocrats), gentry (country landowners) and clergy (members of the church) in order to govern effectively. This could be achieved by using their personality to inspire loyalty, or through patronage, a system by which the monarch granted wealth, office and status to their subjects in return for support. Nobles would use their royal connections to advance the careers of friends and family members both at Court (wherever the monarch was residing at the time, usually London) and in the localities where they wielded influence. Thus, the impact of patronage was felt across the country, but its centre lay in the Royal Court, and its ultimate source was the monarch.

The following sources give a good indication of what most contemporaries believed about the powers of the monarch.         

The Political Nation – Parliament

Government came from the personality of the monarch with the help of a Privy (i.e., private) Council of nobles and bishops, and a parliament of two houses drawn from the nobility, gentry and clergy. The legal system rested on Common Law, which had evolved gradually over many centuries from old English customs and precedents made by monarchs in Parliament and interpreted by judges. Parliaments were not a permanent part of government, but assembled as and when the monarch deemed it necessary. They would be called to make new laws and approve extra taxation when the monarch was unable to provide for all the functions of government from his or her own resources. However, the importance of Parliament had increased under the Tudors and would continue to do so during the 17^th century. This can be explained by the following factors:

• a rising population placed new burdens on Crown resources – monarchs therefore needed more money;

• under Henry VIII, Parliament’s powers had been enhanced to legally establish a new Church of England – suddenly MPs were given law-making power in new and important areas of government such as religion, foreign relations and the succession;

• as Parliament had arranged for James VI of Scotland to inherit the throne English throne (as James I), which represented a significant increase in his personal power and status, some MPs felt he was morally obliged to take greater note of their concerns; 

• the expanding machinery of the English State gave the Political Nation as a whole more experience and awareness of law and governance – the main channel for expressing their attitudes and expectations was the meeting between the monarch and his advisers in Parliament.